Garfield Park Conservatory Wedding Photography | Chicago, Illinois | Tiffany + Luke - Chicago Wedding Photographer by Mark Trela Photography

Garfield Park Conservatory wedding photos

I clearly remember the day when I met Tiffany and Luke for the first time to chat about their wedding at Garfield Park Conservatory. I thought to myself that they contemplate each other perfectly. I also noticed certain aura of stoic calmness around Tiffany and Luke with a bright spark of excitement in Tiffany’s eyes. We talked about their ideas and their vision of the wedding day and throughout the whole conversation I thought that they are my ideal couple. Deeply in love, laid back yet sophisticated, and most importantly, caring about what matters the most in regards to the act of getting married. At the end of our meeting I also remembered Tiffany saying: “I knew the moment I looked at your work that you will be our wedding photographer.” I was trying to be cool but upon hearing it my heart exploded with joy.

The wedding day itself was a documentary wedding photographer”s dream. From the preparations at Hotel Allegro to the last photograph taken of Tiffany and Luke dancing to the last song at the Garfield Park Conservatory, my heart giggled as every shot I took felt so natural. Yes, we planned the wedding day timeline carefully and Tiffany and Luke followed many of my tips and suggestions. However, there was also a place for spontaneity and nothing I photographed felt contrived. I deeply feel that the reason the experience was so natural is that Tiffany and Luke paid all their attention to themselves (and their love), their family and their friends, without being distracted by small things that rarely matter at the end of the wedding day. This may have been one of the best weddings I have had a pleasure to photograph and as documentary wedding photographer and as an artist I felt so fulfilled. They put a complete trust in my vision, which allowed me to be at my most creative. At the end, I strongly believe we delivered (Magda was a big part of the process as well) the images they love deeply and are meaningful to them. Below is their wedding day story.

Now, few words about Garfield Park Conservatory itself. We’ve had a pleasure of photographing weddings there many times but somehow (until Tiffany and Luke’s wedding), we’ve never had a wedding where both the ceremony and the reception were at the park itself. It was always either a long portrait shoot (and you need a permit for that), or ceremony only or a reception itself. And let us tell you, Garfield Conservatory may be the best wedding venue in Chicago for someone who loves nature. Garfield Park offers everything you can imagine, if you love beautiful outdoor spaces: excess to some extraordinary plans that make amazing backdrop for portraits, outdoor and indoor space for the ceremony (rain or shine … no worries there), epic outdoor spots for the sunset portraits of the married couple and endless paths where your guests can loose themselves among plants and trees. Garfield Park as well as Columbus Park Refectory and Cafe Brauer inside Lincoln Park in Chicago belong to my top few spots for outdoor/indoor weddings in Chicago. For someone, who loves nature and admire outdoors yet still wants to stay in the middle of the city, these are the top places to get hitched. We photographed in all of them multiple times and every time we find them as exciting and inspiring as the very first time we documented there.